I recently purchased the Samsung Galaxy Tab S (8.4 inch) Android tablet; AND, after having owned several Android tablets, this one is definitely the cream of the crop.

I continue to learn to navigate the tablet and came across a setting that I have found to be very useful that many users most likely will not try (because they do not know it is there or how to turn it “on”). It is called an Assistant Menu, that once activated, creates a small (square) floating icon (that can be moved around the screen) that will give you the ability to launch various actions, such as:

Home

Back

Recently Opened Apps

Lock and Turn Off Screen

Brightness Adjustment

Volume Adjustment

Screen Capture

Open Notification List

Power Off

Restart

Device Options

Settings

Cursor

More Options

Rotate Screen

Zoom

SPECIAL NOTE: If you notice on the list above there is one option that will give you the ability to grab screenshots, which is worth its’ weight in gold. I used that option to create the screenshot below.

The neat thing about all of this is that this floating assistant menu can be edited; and, the functions you find that you would use the most, can be reordered. The menu is easy to turn “on” and if you find you do not like it, simply go back and turn it “off”.

To turn this menu “on” and to get you to the place to where you need to be, here is how to turn “on” and edit the menu:

Tap the Assistant Menu Switch to toggle the switch to “on”. The Assistant Menu icon will appear at the bottom right of the screen (at which point it can be moved around).

To edit the menu, simply tap where it says Assistant Menu > Edit (see screenshot below). At this point you can drag the icons around and place them in the order you desire. The order you see below is the actual order I set for my menu. You can also remove various components from the menu. For example, using the screenshot below, I opted to remove Cursor, More Options, Rotate Screen and Zoom from the menu.

I love screen capture applications due they are very useful in drafting articles for the blog and for everyday computing. I have featured other capture programs on the blog, and every I time turn around I stumble across another one. The one I present today, called FireShot, I somehow missed on my radar. FireShot currently is carrying a 5 star rating (from over 7500 reviews) and was selected in 2013 as “The Best Free Google Chrome Extension for 2013″ by PCMAG.COM”. FireShot is available as a Google Chrome Extension from the Chrome Web Store.

FireShot typically performs like many of the other screen capture utilities; however, it offers more features than what else is out there. For example, one feature that really jumped out at me is that you can capture a page (or part of page) with FireShot and save it as a PDF file.

This is only one of the features and is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to FireShot.

As a blog writer it is necessary to have a good screen capture application available. Probably the best screen capture extension in the Google Chrome Store right now is Nimbus Screenshot: Capture and Annotate.

Nimbus Screenshot fits in well with ScribeFire, that is also a Chrome browser extension, that I use to draft my blog articles. With both of these extensions in place, all articles that I compose are performed directly in my browser (Google Chrome and/or Chromium) making my writing experience much more pleasant, efficient, and faster.

Nimbus Screenshot gives you the ability to capture a whole Web page (snipping tool), a part of it or the whole browser window. Built in is an optional editor, with a very user-friendly interface, where you can edit your captures, crop your images; AND, add text (or comments), lines, arrows, circles, rectangles, etc… When done you can save your screenshots to your Google Drive or Nimbus account. The free Nimbus account allows you to save up to 100 mbs of data a month.

As a side note, which I need to explore further; Nimbus also offers, in a addition to the Google Chrome browser extension, a screen capture app for the Windows, Android, and Firefox platforms.

As a blogger I often use a screen capture program to grab screenshots to use in my postings. Most screen capture programs I use are locally installed Windows programs; however, lately I have been using the Google Chrome browser extension called Awesome Screenshot (Capture and Annotate) to grab screenshots to post in Scribefirewhich is the editor I use to draft my posts.

One of my goals in my blog drafting and posting is to solely find ways to use my browser to do all the work, without relying on locally installed software. Using Awesome Screenshot (Capture and Annotate) and Scribefire together, which is also a browser extension, is bringing me closer to that goal.

One thing I want to point out about Awesome Screenshot (Capture and Annotate) is that it is one of the highest rated browser extensions, with approximately 1.3 million users, at the Chrome Web Store, which speaks highly of this application.

A FREE ALL-IN-ONE SCREEN CAPTURE PROGRAM that provides a full-featured screen capture tool, an intuitive image editor, a color picker, a color palette, a pixel- ruler, a protractor, a crosshair and even a whiteboard…

If you have any question or doubt in regards to performance of your mobile broadband connection; install FCC Speed Test. FCC Speed Test is an Android app that accurately measures your mobile broadband performance and displays an in-depth view of its factors (e.g. download and upload speed, latency, and packet loss).

In 2012, the Federal Communications Commission revealed their plans to provide mobile users with a way to more accurately find information about mobile broadband speeds offered by their carriers and crowd-sourcing the data across the US. The aim is to help the agency crowdsource data about wireless performance for their own record keeping. To expand the program, FCC has now released a new Android app simply dubbed FCC Speed Test… READ MORE

Important Windows 8 Shortcut Keys To Know About

Windows key+D = Takes you to the desktop

Windows key+R = Opens the Run box

Windows key+I = Opens Settings

Windows key+Q = Opens a Search screen

Windows key+X =Opens the Quick Access menu

PicPick – All-In-One Screen Capture Program

I have tried many screen capture programs and PicPick always comes out on top. If you are into graphic editing, blogging, desktop publishing, etc… PicPick is a must have installation.

Ecotones SOUND+SLEEP Machine

For roughly the same amount you’d spend for a month’s supply of sleeping medication, SOUND+SLEEP provides high-quality, natural sound compositions to help you relax and treat your body to a night of deep, restorative sleep. Featuring upward-facing speakers for full-room, high-definition sound, SOUND+SLEEP delivers a rich audio experience and automatically adjusts to minimize the effect of background noises and other distractions… CHECK IT OUT HERE

Jigsaw Explorer – Best Online Jigsaw Puzzles

This is the best jigsaw puzzle application that I have come across that allows you to rotate the pieces, determine the number of pieces to use and use your own pictures; right from your browser (no install required)… GET IT HERE

PicPick – All In One Design Tool

PicPick is an all-in-one program that provides a full-featured screen capture tool, an intuitive image editor, a color picker, a color palette, a pixel- ruler, a protractor, a crosshair and even a whiteboard.

This software is distributed as a freeware for personal use only… GET IT HERE

Cable Movie Blackmail

Why you Shouldn’t rent cable porn movies… Cable companies tell you that they don’t list the movies you rent. But any company insider can know. Their movies have codes and so do movies you rent… READ MORE

I have tried just about every screen capture utility out there, but a new one landed on my plate that I can only describe as being in the category of awesome (especially for being free and portable). It is called LiveCapture.

I am not going to get into the details, because the screen shot below tells it all; and, besides part of the fun with a program such as this is exploring all of the program options. The only thing I don’t like about LiveCapture is that when you run it, a capture toolbar initially appears that really does not (in my opinion) do the program any justice (unless you like toolbars). The good, or at least for me, is that you can turn the toolbar “off”. Where this program really shines is when you right click on the LiveCapture icon in the system tray (as the screenshot below reflects) to show what this gem can do. Again, awesome…

Visitors to What's On My PC

2,257,151

WELCOME

What's
On My PC (featuring Geek Squeaks')

The
intent of this blog is to share my knowledge base of computers,
software, gadgets and information technology in terms that is
presentable and understandable to ALL; and at the same time feed my
obsession for information technology by learning from others.

I
encourage you to visit frequently and communicate via the
comments section at the bottom of any of the articles.

All
blog posts (articles) are the original works of the author of
"What's On My PC..." (unless otherwise indicated)